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History of Religion
The History of Religion 'in Ersos is longer than recorded history. There are thousands of currently practiced belief systems, all evolving in some way from an ancient, proto-religion that the first humans brought with them from Tasquín. Vantikism - Before the Settlement In the time before the settlement of Thossos, it is believed that human religious beliefs had very little diversity, as they were all recently descended from a common folk religion which is believed to have arisen in Tasquín, tens of thousands of years ago. This religion is most commonly referred to as Vantikism, after Vantik, a coastal region of eastern Tasquin where artifacts have been discovered. Vantikism and its related beliefs typically had a few key aspects: *Belief in Sun, Moon, and Sky spirits, with varying levels of influence. *Ancestor veneration. *Ritual fires and incense, typically involving ash wood. Early Fracturing Evidence of Vantikism can be found all across eastern Thossos, showing that this proto-religion persisted for at least a thousand years after the Settlement had occurred. But in time, the sheer size of Thossos naturally led increasingly distant groups to evolve different beliefs. In Catriya, for example, the Amarya developed a much more complex social structure based religion than other tribes in the region. This disparity was a contributing factor to the wars that wracked the region in the 9th millennium PC. Also during this time, the primitive Iniari were diverging even more drastically. Their culture came to incorporate a plethora of animal spirits, a unique development for this period. In general, Vantikism was splitting into more and more groups, but all were still related. Scholars classify the offshoots that evolved before 8,000 PC as mere sects. It wouldn't be long, however, until truly radical thought began to spring up across the continent. Keloria ''Main article: Kelorian Religion Kelorians are the first known people to devise a new religion, wholly unrelated to Vantikism. This occurred sometime around 7800 PC, as evidenced by the sudden shift in their monument making. It wouldn't be for a thousand more years that similar radical inventions would be seen elsewhere in the continent, and beyond. The Kelorians' new belief system revolved around seven all powerful gods, and their reactions to both one another and their limited engagement with humanity. This is reflective of a wider cultural shift for the Kelorians, from a loose tribe into a highly stratified society. The Kelorians were also the first to generate a definitive creation myth. Neither Vantikism nor its sects had a commonly accepted story of the world's creation at this point, although some sects evolved one at a later date. Ulstos By 7000 PC, Vantikism had splintered into two broad categories: eastern and western. Western beliefs tended to involve more ritual, while eastern beliefs tended to value the role of priests and shamans. In the Ulstos Islands especially, geography was driving wild adaptations in western Vantikism. Each island began to develop its own set of rituals and ceremonies. Another key feature of Ulstosian beliefs were the proliferation of spirits; indeed, many ancient Ulstosians believed that there were an infinite number of spirits, inhabiting every leaf, pebble, stick, and animal. To them, the natural and spiritual worlds were one. This spiritual approach didn't stop violence, however: some of the world's first known religious wars were fought between Ulstosian islands. Sarthos, 6600 - 3500 Early Sarthosians believed, like their Ulstosian forebears, in an uncountable quantity of nature spirits. But in the 5th millennium, the Sarthosian religions were becoming more focused on individual spirits. And by 4300, the religion of the south could be more accurately described as polytheistic. The Sarthosian pantheon featured more than 20 primary gods. The Herek Tur of the north followed an alternate route. While they adopted the concept of polytheism from the south, they added much mysticism and ritual to their beliefs. Western Coastline Beliefs, 5000 - 3500 Just before the fall of Keloria, the west of Thossos was in the hands of thousands of small kingdoms and tribes. The great diversity was caused by the region's mountainous and dry terrain. This allowed the thousands of cultures of the continent to evolve independently. But there were several dominant belief systems, especially towards the western coast. *'''Timmum: From Tyumeros, the headlands of the Etrynian River. The Timm people believed in four distinct war gods: Gur, Gorrenem, Honder, and Rigasem. Jade and other precious stones were highly prized and formed the basis of several rituals. The Timm controlled a relatively large area south of the Uterian Mountains, giving their religion a wide base of belief. Probably the most widely accepted religion in the 6th millennium, outside of Keloria. *'Espomism: '''From the far west coast, in the area of the Isryos Peninsula. A creation of the Isrur people, this belief was uniquely monotheistic. It is unknown how this oddity arose, but it was apparently well ingrained in Isrur society. Their culture was theocratic, ruled by an Espom, a semi-divine king. Blue was a sacred color, assumed to be in connection to the sea; many elements of the religion held the ocean sacred. *'Caskopism: 'A much later religion, Caskopism rose to prominence around 3900 PC. It was the official state religion of the Kyst as well as the Kelmerians. Caskopism takes its name from Caskopi, vessels used in ancient times to hold oils or oils mixed with spice. The priests of Caskopism used such oils extensively in fortune telling and healing. This religion still retained some of western Vantikism's spirits, but also relied heavily on a social class of religious devotees - a major reason for its state sponsorship. The Rise of Hasynism In the middle of the third millennium, around 2700 PC, Hasynism was born. On the western hills of the Pernians, a god named Hasyn began to be worshiped. He was said to have taken the form of a man in order to issue his will to mankind. Legends about this period are conflicting. But the core of the religion is a book of Hasyn's teachings; the oldest copy is nearly two thousand years old. The religion, which rejected many of the institutions of its predecessor, began to spread quickly among commoners in the regions. In modern times, the growth of Hasynism has stagnated, with only minor pockets of belief outside of western Thossos. In that region, however, it remains a force. It is one of the major religions in all coastal nations today, as well as a minor presence on many Ulstosian islands. Ancient Nasar Religion in Nasar was primitive for thousands of years. Lacking any dynamic cultural shifts like in Nathossos, folk religions flourished in the north and evolved little from their ancestral beliefs. Galderia In Galderia, worship of animal spirits lasted through the middle of the Thossian Empire. This set of beliefs is called ''Cirae Anten, or the Dancing Spirits. It was originally brought to Galderia by the Har, settlers from western Nathossos. After the demise of the Har and the rise of smaller kingdoms, these beliefs were adopted and reworked by the many smaller kingdoms in the region. One of the last remaining aspects of the Cirae Anten is the legend of the Hrae Lu, a benevolent spirit still widely prayed to in northeast Nasar. In southern Galderia, Kelmerian domination had a huge impact on belief. Caskopism, mentioned above, was imposed by the Kelmerians until their defeat by the Amyrites around 3100 PC. Many parts of Geldren still practice Caskopism. But overall, the Caskopic practices were adapted by Galderians into the Tendalia tradition. Coneria offshoots of cirae anten. tewen Amyr Desert Refer to the Tak page for an explanation of more modern beliefs in this region Category:Beliefs